Last week, the company admitted a problem with the software that controls the anti-lock braking system of the 2010 model of the car and said it had found a solution for cars that started to roll off of the assembly line in Japan last month.

It has yet to find a solution for the estimated 37,000 cars already on U.S. roads or the more than 200,000 of the 2010 model year vehicles that have been sold worldwide, but the company said Friday that a solution was "near."

Jim Lentz, president of Toyota Motor Sales in the United States, during an online video interview Monday evening, declined to say when -- or if -- Toyota would recall the car.

"We're going to do whatever it takes to make sure our customers feel secure and safe with our products," Lentz said of the Prius issue.

When the problem was originally brought to light last week, Toyota executives initially described it as a momentary delay in braking when the car was driving over slippery or bumpy surfaced such as ice or rutted roads.

Lentz, speaking about the problem on Digg.com Monday, described it as a change in braking feel, a description that Toyota has begun using more recently when talking about the issue.

Toyota spokespeople did not respond to an e-mail sent earlier Monday asking if the cars maintain full braking power when these problems occur.

As of Thursday, when the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced it was opening a formal investigation into braking problems with the 2010 Prius, 124 Prius owners had lodged complaints about the problem.

A spokeswoman for the highway safety agency said Toyota had not yet confirmed any recall plans.

Toyota spokespeople in the U.S. did not return calls and e-mails asking about a possible recall.

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